Today’s officially marks a new chapter in this solo working-from-home life of mine.

I now have a handsome coworker working here at home with me — Barclay! 🎉

As some of you saw on my Instagram, this past Friday was his last day as a full-time employee at Unbound, the awesome non-prof where he has worked these past 5 years. It was a bittersweet day for him, for sure, since he loves his coworkers and will miss them deeply. But the good news is that he’s still going to be freelancing with the organization going forward. And — probably the part Barclay’s most excited about — now he finally gets to say farewell to cubicle life and say hello to the working-from-home life here with me and the pups! Actually, in exactly three short weeks from now, in Spain with me and the pups!

It’s a mega change, and one that we’ve both agreed has made this upcoming move of ours feel even more real. And I have no doubt that it’ll be a big adjustment for the two of us (especially for my introverted self who’s used to charging up on my alone time during the day), and we expect it’ll take us awhile to find our rhythm working from home together.

But I’ve gotta say, right now I’m pretty dang excited about all of the fun stuff that’ll come with him not being stuck in a cube from 9-5. You know, like everything from not having to rush to get him off to work in the morning, to getting to listen to one another’s playlists while we work, to having him whip up his famous espressos when we hit the afternoon slump, to not having to ask for PTO when we want to travel, to — hey, once we get to Barcelona — being all Spanish and taking a nice siesta in the afternoon if we’d like. This new season of his work life feels like one more piece of the adventure we’re beginning. And I’m pretty excited to see how it goes.

Anyway, that said, probably the biggest perk I’m looking forward to having Barclay working from home is all of the lunch dates we now get to have! I usually do most of my photographing for the blog around lunchtime, which has always made it difficult to meet friends out for lunch dates. (Which means that Trevor Noah has been my date most days. 😉) But now that Barclay will be home — plus, all mealtimes in Spain seem to happen a few hours later — we’re excited to have some more fun lunch dates in our life!

So this week, I whipped up a batch of these yummy bowls for our lunch together. They’re nice and seasonal (oh hey, first week of autumn), they’re totally naturally vegan and gluten-free (this husband of mine is vegetarian), and they’re easy to make and customize, and they are absolutely delicious. Perfect for make-ahead lunches…and lunch dates. 😘

I have a new recipe to add to our delicious little collection today. Because while we’ve got a good thing going with my favorite garlicky salmon, shrimp and spaghetti recipes here on the blog, I realized the other day that we were missing a recipe with the #1 most requested ingredient here at Gimme Some Oven.

Chicken!!!

Literally tens of thousands of you have made and loved my foolproof recipe for tender and juicy Baked Chicken Breasts, and are often requesting new variations to try. So today’s recipe seemed like a win-win for my chicken and garlic lovers all around. It’s quick and easy to prep (especially if you buy some pre-peeled garlic cloves), it’s baked up with a heavenly lemon-butter sauce, it’s naturally free of dairy and gluten, and — get ready — because this recipe is fabulously garlicky.

Oh friends, I have a new secret ingredient that is going to kick your butternut squash soup game up a major notch this year. And it’s just about the simplest thing ever…

…a chai tea bag! 💛

Many of you have heard me chat before about how much I love drinking hot cinnamon spice and chai tea (kind of have a thing for spice-filled teas) every afternoon during the chillier months of the year. So it’s safe to say that our tea cabinet is always well-stocked this time of year. But the other day as I was grabbing a mug to steep my afternoon tea, it randomly occurred to me — all of those yummy chai spices and butternut squash would probably be a match made in flavor heaven. And they would probably be extra-amazing in my favorite slow cooker butternut squash soup recipe. So last week, when I cooked up my inaugural batch for the fall, I decided to try swapping the usual seasonings for a single chai tea bag instead.

And guys, this soup ended up being fall vibes to the max. 🍁 🍂 🍃

It was cozy, it was chai spice-y (not to be confused with spicy), it was wonderfully creamy and butternut-y, and it was hands-down one of the tastiest soups I’ve ever made. You’ve gotta try it.

]]>https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/chai-butternut-squash-soup/feed/7https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/chai-butternut-squash-soup/Quick Israeli Salad — 3 Ways!http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/gimmesomeoven/~3/Aoo5T2TTUkA/
https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/israeli-salad/#commentsFri, 15 Sep 2017 10:02:44 +0000https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/?p=45034This Quick Israeli Salad recipe is quick and easy to make, and full of the best fresh and zesty flavors! Feel free to serve it on its own, or incorporate it into a quick wrap or hummus dip!

It has been unseasonably warm and summery this week in Kansas City, with sun shining brightly and temperatures casually stretching into the 90s…

…and I couldn’t be happier. 😁

I’ve been feeling all the feels lately about wrapping up our last summer here before we move to Spain. And I’ve been especially aware of how many little outdoorsy things we’re going to miss in our neighborhood here — from warm mornings sitting outside Quay Coffee next door drinking our pour-overs, to afternoon walks to the City Market to pick up produce, to evening happy hours spent eating pizza and drinking wine on the patio Il Lazzarone, to our neighbornights at the picnic table out back, to late-night walks around the neighborhood with our pups, to a random parking lot hellos and catch-ups every single day with neighbors — time spent outside in our neighborhood each summer has been the best. And we’re seriously going to miss it.

So while everyone else has been lamenting the unusually warm weather, I’ve been finding excuses to dart outside into the sunshine every second I can to soak it all up. Which naturally means that I’ve been making extra excuses to make daily nostalgic trips to the farmers market this week. Which means that our fridge has been downright overflowing with end-of-the-season summer produce. Which means, of course, that we had to make at least one final Israeli Salad for the summer. Which turned into another (to spoon into pita wraps). Which turned into another (which we sprinkled on top of a hummus dip).

]]>https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/israeli-salad/feed/9https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/israeli-salad/Cabbage, Sausage and Potato Souphttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/gimmesomeoven/~3/YhGtAJKeDXw/
https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/cabbage-sausage-potato-soup/#commentsWed, 13 Sep 2017 13:14:40 +0000https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/?p=45087This Cabbage, Sausage and Potato Soup recipe is totally hearty and comforting, full of the best savory flavors, easy to make, and it’s guaranteed to warm you right up!

Guys, this soup.

It’s only the middle of September, and I have already made it threetimes this past month. And when I say three times, keep in mind that I’m now married to a handsome vegetarian who won’t come anywhere near this one. Which means this huge, simmering, delicious pot of soup (plus leftovers) are exclusively for Yours Truly.

And I still can’t get enough of it!

This is probably due in part to the fact that I’m about 30 years late to the party that is cabbage soup. I’m not sure why, but our family never grew up eating it, and for years I used to only think of it only in terms of those crazy fad diets, and never really tried a good bowl until a few years ago. But the second I did — oh man, guys — it was cabbage soup love at first bite. Especially when you add some smoked kielbasa sausage to the picture, and some hearty potatoes, and lots of savory and garlicky seasonings — this feel-good, hearty, savory, delicious soup is comfort food to the max.

I wish I squeeze you all around my table and ladle you up a steaming bowl for yourself right now. But instead, I’m just going to beg you to stir up a pot for yourself. Because this soup = magic. 💛

As a Midwestern girl through and through, I’ve gotta admit — I will always love me a good pot roast.

But hey, whoever said that had to include roast beef? 😏

A few weeks ago, when I found myself with two leftover cartons of baby bella mushrooms in the fridge that needed to be used up stat, I decided to try swapping them in as the main ingredient in my traditional pot roast recipe. And lo and behold, they turned out to be a plant-based swap made in heaven.

This vegetarian pot roast recipe was a total winner, guys!

It’s still full of those classic savory flavors (and garlicky gravy!) that we all love. It’s quick and easy to prep, and easy to make either on the stovetop or in the slow cooker or Instant Pot. It’s naturally vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free. And it’s totally, wonderfully delicious.

I just officially stocked my pantry with its first round of pumpkin puree for the season (yesss), and whipped up a fresh batch of homemade pumpkin pie spice (just 5 ingredients!), and stocked the fridge with a very friendly stash of butter and cream cheese to have on hand (because…butter and cream cheese 😁).

Now the question is simply…what to make?!?

I’m feeling all of the baking vibes this year, and have a long list of new recipes that I’d like to try. But if you have any specific requests or favorite recipes to share, I’d love love love to hear ’em. (Seriously, your requests are my favorite recipes to share here!)

That said, I also have a long list of pumpkin recipes here on the site that I’m excited to revisit this fall, including these perfectly soft and delicious pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting that I first shared way back in my very first year of blogging (holla 2009!). I was cleaning out an old camera card this week and forgot that I had re-photographed them last year. So I thought I would bump this recipe back to the top of the blog today for anyone who might have missed them over the years. They have been my go-to pumpkin cookie recipe for literally a decade now, and they are seriously the best.

]]>https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/iced-pumpkin-cookies/feed/36https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/iced-pumpkin-cookies/Italian Sausage, Gnocchi and Tomato Souphttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/gimmesomeoven/~3/sUrmq8Rjvhw/
https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/italian-sausage-gnocchi-tomato-soup/#commentsThu, 07 Sep 2017 12:04:13 +0000https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/?p=44986This Italian Sausage, Gnocchi and Tomato Soup recipe only takes about 30 minutes to make, and is filled with the absolute best savory and cozy flavors for soup season.

As a summer lovin’ girl, the flip of the calendar into September has always felt a little bittersweet. ❤️

I mean, I love a beautiful crisp fall day as much as the next girl. But man, saying good-bye to my favorite season of the year with its wonderfully warm, sunshine-soaked, flip-flop-filled days has always been a tough transition for this little heart of mine. I just feel like I was absolutely made for this season of the year. (And literally never want it to end!)

Thankfully, though, there are cozy scarfs and warm cups of tea and crackling backyard fires already in the works this September, which definitely help to ease the transition for summery-souls like me into this new season. But without a doubt, my favorite “gateway” into fall is the arrival of my favorite food season of the year. Yep.

Soup season!

Specifically, warm, cozy, hearty, and feel-good soup season.

You know, the kind of soups that warm you up through and through, and make everyone want to snuggle in for an evening at home? The kind of soups that you can stir together quickly right after work, or maybe simmer low and slow all day in the slow cooker? The kind of soups that maybe (ok, definitely) beg to be served with a nice crusty baguette and maybe a glass of wine? The kind of soups that have you falling back in love with fall all over again?

]]>https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/italian-sausage-gnocchi-tomato-soup/feed/17https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/italian-sausage-gnocchi-tomato-soup/How To Cut A Bell Pepper – 4 Ways!http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/gimmesomeoven/~3/rfYNl96I2d0/
https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/how-to-cut-a-bell-pepper/#commentsTue, 05 Sep 2017 10:02:36 +0000https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/?p=44545Learn how to cut a bell pepper with this quick 1-minute video tutorial! Plus, I’ve got lots of great tips for you for how to select and store fresh bell peppers.

How do you feel about bell peppers?

Love ’em? Hate ’em? Have a favorite color? (Have a least favorite color?) Like ’em raw or roasted, sautéed or stuffed, diced or sliced? Have a few ripe and ready to pick in your garden right now?

Well, while these beauties are still in season and overflowing at our neighborhood farmers market, I wanted to squeeze in a quick How-To Tuesday video tutorial with lots of tips on how to cut a bell pepper. And specifically, how to cut bell peppers 4 different ways (diced, sliced, ringed, or “stuffed”), how to select perfectly ripe bell peppers, how to store ’em for maximum freshness. Plus, of course, lots of tips for recipes to make with them. 👌

Seriously. It’s a smoothie + a mimosa + a refreshing glass of OJ….all in one! And, it only takes a few minutes to whip up. And with it’s delicious tropical flavors, your first sip is pretty much guaranteed to have you feeling all of those beachy vibes…wherever life may find you. (You know, like right in the heart of the Midwest…about as far away from a beach as possible. 😂)